No change to the Mental Capacity Act 2005

Families of children who lack mental capacity and have a Child Trust Fund or Junior ISA may be disappointed to hear that the government has decided not to alter the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA 2005) to make accessing these accounts easier when the child turns 18.

 

The transition from childhood to being an adult for such children can often be a time of upheaval and change; financial and care arrangements that parents had in place are sometimes challenged or upturned when the child turns 18. It had been thought that a new route may be opened up to enable parents to access balances in accounts of less than £2,500 on behalf of their adult children if they lacked mental capacity but this is no longer thought to be likely. What parents will have to do is apply to the Court of Protection to be appointed as their Deputy for Property and Financial Affairs; just as anyone would in order to have authority to manage the finances on behalf of someone who lacks mental capacity.

Although making an application to the Court of Protection is rarely something that a family member wants to do, since January 2023 the process has been modernised and applications for a Deputy to be appointed are now made through an online portal.  It is expected that the new process will cut processing times at the Court and enable incapacitated individuals’ finances to be accessed more quickly by the newly appointed Deputy.

For more information about applications to the Court of Protection, whether it be in respect of anyone who lacks mental capacity, please contact Sophie Fenn, Senior Associate Solicitor at The Wilkes Partnership.